The Portland daily press., 1887-05-30
MEMORIAL SERVICES.
The Services at Deering and Con-
gress Street Church Yesterday.

Services in memory of the comrades who
died as a result Of the Rebellion took place
at several churches:
CONGRESS ST. NJ. L. CHURCH.
A large congregation assembled at this
church yesterday, to which were added be-
tween 30 and 60 comrades of Thatcher Post
and the ladies of Thatcher Relief Corps,
filing the house to its utmost capacity.
The decorations, consisting Of portraits,
flags. flowers and arms were arranged with
much tastes and were credit to those hav-
ing them in charge. The front of the organ
bore the portraits Of Washington, Lincoln,
Garfield, Grant, Scott, Logan and Mcclellan,
and was draped with the colors of the 18th
Maine, both State and National, and many
other flags. A stack of muskets was placed
at each side of the pulpit with the guidons
OF Thatcher Post above them. Around the
auditorium were flags bearing the badges Of
all the Army corps, and cut and potted
flowers in profusion were placed in every
available spot
The exercises opened by the choir singing
the hymn "Mournfully, tenderly," followed
by the Scripture lessons from numbers, 54th
chapter and 18th Romans, 1st verse, read by
the pastor. Rev. Ezra Tinker. Prayer was
offered by Rev. ID. b. Randall, the Nestor Of
the Methodist church in this State, whose
face and strong, earnest words Of faith
brought back to the people those times in the
past to which the day Is sacred.
The sermon by Rev. Mr.. Tinker from Num-
bers xiii, 23d, was very appropriate to the
occasion. Considering the day, and asso-
citation, said the pastor, it Is well to depart
from the ordinary routine OF pulpit exercises
1t may be profitable to take retrospective
view, and from the history Of our nation
Judge OF what may come, as coming events
cast their shadows before" Less than four
centuries ago Genoese adventurer set forth
from Palos in Spain, in search of the Edo
rad0 OF the anclents and found the new con-
tlnent. From the discovery Of America for
two hundred years we need note nothing ex-
cept the landing Of the Pilgrim fathers; a
God fearing people, they dedicated this
country to God. When the Declaration of
Independence was signed nation was born
in day. Many hard blows remained to be
given, but the close of the Revolution found
this a free people, with the children of the
Purtans to uphold our institutions, who
were jealous Of their rights and true to civil
liberty. Lexington, Bunker Hill, Benning-
ton, Saratoga, and many other battlefelds
had demanded that this should be a free peo-
pie. Self government is the highest, and
brute forse the lowest form of Government
TO enable this people to govern itself they
must be educated; IL any man strikes blow
at our system of popular education ''shoot
him on the spot" Ancient Greece and
Rome had wealth and culture, but they were
for the few; the masses had no education.
nor the Christian virtues. and they fell. In
their time Plato and Socrates taught, The
mistocles ruled and LeOnidas fought, but
they had not Christianity and popular edu-
cation. With these our country must pros
per; but we all owe our duty TO the govern
ment to see that it prospers. Bad men
are often found In Office because honest men
are not careful enough to keep them out.
Our form of government is the best, but
liable to abuses. 1t Is our duty to see that 1t
is not abused With religion and popular
education we may perpetuate II, but without
these our rich heritage must be lost. The
higher education is within the reach Of ali
who have the courage to attain it. Wealth
and power are open to all; we have no noble
men except such as nature has made But
every man may be a king. The greatest
Man the world has ever known was born in
a manger; and the history of our country
shows us that honest, God-fearing poverty
has its chance with the highest. We have
free church in a free State; when the church
comes in the garb of mendicant to the